Aqua Pazza means Crazy
Water. If not on the menu, just ask for this great seafood dish at
Carrera’s Vecchia Cucina in Tiburon. One could say Fresh Fish in
Crazy Water but, ‘Acqua Pazza’ sounds so Italian, you know it is
going to be good. The sauce has many flavors in it to make most any
fresh fish, of firm texture, taste simply wonderful. Lake Superior
White Fish, Stripped Bass, Halibut are all examples of fish that
could also work. Acqua Pazza is a favorite dish in summer in
Partner/Chefs Ricardo Carrera and Antonio Mora’s home city of
Naples, Italy, when there is a lot of fresh fish to choose from. In
San Francisco there is fresh fish to choose from most all year. This
light but exceedingly flavorful dish is perfect for October’s Indian
Summer nights.

Ricardo serving
customers at Fridays on Main St.

Ricardo Carrera came to Tiburon, last spring (see
Bay Crossings May 2004) to open Carr era Vecchia Cucina at the end
of Ark Row on the lower level. It may not be easy to find, but this
new ‘Tempting Secret of Tiburon’ is fast becoming very popular for
the dinner hour. Since they opened, the clients who come have become
like family. The atmosphere when visited on a Friday night was
warmly welcoming, romantic and friendly. The restaurant seats 54
people. It was full but no one had to wait for long. Any who waited
for a table for were treated to a delicious glass of wine from Carr
era’s impressive wine list of good Italian wines and often seen in
conversation with one of the warm and friendly partners. (It
reminded me of Pasta Mia’s, voted the most popular restaurant in
Pacific Grove for more than 10 years when the original owners and
family ran it.)

A couple who dined near by were above 70 years of
age. They were an inspiration being so romantic in the candlelight.
They were holding hands, laughing at times, heads together
whispering and giggling at other moments. Asked as they left, “Are
you married?” because of their courting ways. He beamed as he said,
“She has been the love of my life for 27 years. This is our second
marriage and we are both blessed by it.” She had stood in the door
way while we briefly spoke, looking with love at her beau, swaying
while leaning against the door jam looking like a lady in youthful
bloom. Families and friends as well as couples of all ages fill the
tables from 7:30 to 9:30 with a constant flow for any spare chair.

As one group of 3 ladies were leaving one noticed my
husband’s dinner choice. “Oh the pink sauce they use on fish here is
to die for, isn’t it?” she enthused. Antonio joined our table for a
brief while and he explained, “When you make a sauce for fish it is
best to only use a sauce that is light. A sauce that does not mask
the fresh flavors of the fish and herbs used.” My husband said the
food he had that night starting with the fresh hot Panini,
(Antonio’s family recipe) and then the Sea Bass topped with mussels
and green beans was the most authentic Italian food he had, since
touring with Patti Pravo in Italy in 1979. Nothing here (in the Bay
Area), including fine Italian restaurants, come close. Culinary
Fusion has ‘Americanized’ or at least effected all but, …” Then he
would take another bite and say, “Ummmm, that is truly Italian.”

When making Acqua Pazza, everything is cooked
together. It is not sautéed or fried, so there is nothing fattening
about it. In a new study it is reported on AOL that an
Adriatic-Mediterranean diet of fresh fish, poached like this one,
can help towards a longer and healthy lifetime. The cooked fish and
sauce is placed over a bed of
fresh
spinach which wilts on the plate, by the heat of the sauce,
retaining all the good vitamins for the dinner. The dish is both
quick and easy to prepare.

To begin, place the cold fresh fish on a plate.
Using 1 tablespoon of oil
for
each fish, lightly oil each fillet on one side then sprinkle with
salt and pepper. Turn it and repeat on the other side allowing it
warm to room temperature, while starting the sauce. Next divide the
spinach in half, placing a mound of fresh
spinach
in the middle of each plate and garnish edges.

To
create Acqua Pazza sauce, add one tablespoon of butter to a midsize
pan. Melt the butter over medium heat, then add wedge sliced
tomatoes. Heating the tomatoes alone, gently begins the sauce. As
they become soft, next add garlic and onion to the juices of the
tomato and melted butter until they begin to become translucent.
Then add the fish and all remaining ingredients.

Cover
and bring to a boil then lower the heat to a simmer. Cooking time
depends on the fish type. Bass and other thicker fish take longer
than a thinner filet. It may mean adding more fish stock to keep
sufficient liquid in the pan while poaching the fish. The liquid is
best when at least deep enough to half cover the fish.

When
the fish is done remove it to a plate. If the oven has a pilot light
it will be warm otherwise, turn the oven on warm for a few minutes
then turn it off. Place the cooked fish in this warm place to till
the sauce is ready.

Reduce
the sauce by half by continuing to simmer. Return the fish to the
pan, once the sauce is reduced, to fully heat through. When again
hot place the fish on the bed of spinach. Pour the Acqua Pazza over
the fish and spinach, garnish the plate and serve. You will be
delighted by the smiles of those who are served this quick and fun
dish.

Partner/Chef
Antonio (Tonino) Morra
Chef Antonio joined Ricardo Carrera as a working chef and partner
mid summer of 2004. Chef Antonio has enjoyed cooking since he was a
little boy. He first began helping by standing on boxes to help his
mother and grandparents in Italy in the kitchen. He graduated from
college in Italy as an Electrical Engineer. He took a job in Germany
as an Electrical Engineer but soon he found his real passion was
cooking. Cooking has been his life ever since. For Antonio, “If you
love life, you love to cook. Anything I can come up with to do with
cooking, I love to do it.” Antonio has consulted in opening several
restaurants in the US. He has also been a frequent guest on all the
major cooking shows in television in Los Angeles. One of his
restaurants was voted as the best Italian Pizza restaurant in all of
Los Angeles. Another was a hangout of the stars. He was brought to
Japan to consult in opening a chain that now has grown to 5 Pizza
restaurants based on his success in Los Angeles.

Tonino’s grandfather was a baker who felt there were
three things important in becoming a good chef. “Pane, Amore and
Fantasia (Bread, Love and Fantasy).” In addition to his grandfather,
his grandmother and mother were all great cooks. His father stayed
out of the kitchen but enjoyed the results of the other’s efforts.

Antonio’s brothers married women who learned from
his mother and grandmother how to cook. In the late 1980’s his
mother came to America and opened a restaurant with the help of her
family including Antonio. “My brothers if they had two eggs, they
would kill them. They cannot cook but they are very good at helping
to run the business and front end of a restaurant.” As a family they
have several restaurants in the Los Angeles area including Beverly
Hills with a new one opening, “Bunino’s” in a nearby suburb.

To join Ricardo was a break away from the family
but Antonio and Ricardo met in the Restaurant business in Los
Angeles nearly 20 years ago and have been friend since. They truly
respect each other’s style and ability as chefs and business men.
Ricardo invited his talented friend to join him to try the lifestyle
of Tiburon. “I love it here!” was Tonino’s response when asked what
he thought after 2 months. This is one restaurant to watch. With
such good food, warmth and character, who knows what is next for
these two fine chefs and restaurateurs.

Carrera’s Vecchia Cucina is located toward the end of Tiburon’s ‘Ark
Row’ on the lower level,
114 Main St. (415) 435-5572